Hello All,

Today stuntman Eddie Braun did what Evel Knievel failed to do back in 1974--he jumped over Snake River Canyon in a rocket "motorcycle"(see: www.google.com/#q=snake+river+canyon+jump ). Maybe we'll see a profile scale "Evel Spirit" model rocket kit, from someone, soon? :-)

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Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR

I was a big fan as a kid. Hope it is on the news tonight.
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It should be--I don't watch TV anymore, but the two local AM radio stations I listen to both carried it on their top-of-the-hour news breaks. But there's no need to wait to see, as the link I posted above (plus YouTube www.youtube.com ) already has several reports--including video coverage of the flight--on it (and on Evel Knievel's 1974 attempt, too). Eddie Braun not only cleared the canyon, but landed far beyond its other side, in a field. Since the "Evel Spirit" Skycycle--which is identical to Knievel's except for an updated parachute system--flew so far, Evel Knievel could have done the same back in 1974 had his 'chute not deployed too soon. Also:

This stunt had great continuity with the original attempt. Douglas Malewicki--who had also worked at Centuri--designed the Skycycles' airframes (the three-finned X-1, which plummeted into the canyon, was more like a rocket-powered motorcycle; the X-2, in which Evel Knievel rode, was designed to be closer to a conventional rocket in construction). Admiral Robert C. Truax developed the original Skycycle's steam rocket motor (he had built and flown much smaller steam rockets at least as far back as the late 1950s at Wallops Island). His son Scott duplicated the X-2 Skycycle's rocket motor and airframe down to the nuts and bolts, even using some spare parts that had been made for the original 1974 X-2 Skycycle.

__________________
Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR

I'm the opposite of Blackshire regarding TV...I watch at least 5 hours a day on average, more on weekends and I saw NOTHING about this.
I did watch the video on the internet....the flight looked to be nominal.
This 'pilot' did not FOOLISHLY prematurely YANK THE LEEVER for chute deployment unlike that POS DIRTBAG back in 1974.
The ONLY good thing about the attempt back in 1974 was all the partying and BRAWLIN' in that town of PODUNK, Idaho instead of the 'festival and golf tournament' that was planned. Probably the most action that town had in 100 years and has had since this current flight. Sometimes a RANDOM no-holds-barred FREE-FER-ALL that resembles a RIOT is the answer to Boredomville, USA with ZERO regard given to 'law-n-order' crotchety old curmudgeons.

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When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !
Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.
ALL systems are GO for MAYHEM, CHAOS, TURMOIL, FIASCOS, and HAVOC !

Wow--Evel was certainly no saint, but he did secure live TV coverage (it was on ABC, if memory serves) of his 1974 attempt. Didn't Knievel's Skycycle have a dead-man switch that he had to hold closed in order to prevent the parachute from deploying too soon (so that it would have activated automatically, had be blacked out under the acceleration)? If so, maybe the g force shoved his arm backward such that he lost his grip on the switch.

__________________
Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR

Off my radar too. They did it but got no credit in the media for it.

I went to a rocket firing today.

Maybe another, younger person (Eddie Braun, being 54, said that with his previous stunt injuries "reminding him" of his age, he considered it his last stunt) will try to better his altitude, velocity, and distance, and your big hybrid motors could power such a vehicle.

__________________
Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR

This could have been promoted. I offered my services of my contacts in media including a Fox exec. They declined.

It is what it is. Awesome but seldomly seen.

Hey, whoever wants to do a higher performance similar stunt, contact me tomorrow for a hamburger on Tuesday.

Ky rocked. Hi Ky, you have been a stalwart. Period.



The ISP on a steam rocket is about 40. HTP mono-propeellant 110, HTP-HTPB hybrid 240. 6x performance.

That's too bad. I'm a little surprised that ABC--which covered many of Evel Knievel's stunts (including his 1974 Snake River Canyon attempt)--didn't cover this one, given the ratings and prestige they got from broadcasting Knievel's stunts. Maybe the "Evel Spirit" team had terms that ABC found unacceptable, or perhaps the folks at the helm of that network today just don't relate to such events anymore, or possibly they didn't want to be associated with anything having to do--even peripherally--with Evel Knievel, now that his reputation is self-scarred?

__________________
Black Shire--Draft horse in human form, model rocketeer, occasional mystic, and writer, see:
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperba...an-form/8075185
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6122050
http://www.lulu.com/product/cd/what...of-2%29/6126511
All of my book proceeds go to the Northcote Heavy Horse Centre www.northcotehorses.com.
NAR #54895 SR